Python 3
Course Syllabus

Please note that this syllabus serves as a standard overview. I always adapt the course to align with my students’ needs and the specific expectations of each institution I work with.

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Introduction

Python is a general-purpose, high-level, multi-paradigm programming language created by Guido van Rossum, and first released in 1991. Its philosophy emphasizes code readability and simplicity, summed up in the famous “Zen of Python” you can read in any Python interpreter by typing import this.

In this day and age, Python is one of the most popular programming languages in the world, according to multiple rankings such as the TIOBE Index, GitHut, and IEEE Spectrum. It powers everything from web backends and data analysis to machine learning, automation, game development, and scientific research.

Behind the scenes, the standard version of Python (called CPython) is built using the C programming language. We say it’s implemented in C.

Game Dev with Python?

Most guides state that Python is used in game development, which isn’t really the case.
Python might be used for simple and small-scale 2D games with libraries like Arcade or Pygame.

For 3D games, Panda3D is probably the most known game engine that uses Python, apart from the deprecated Blender Game Engine (BGE), removed in Blender 2.8 but later revived independently as UPBGE (which is not linked nor maintained by the Blender Foundation). For AAA games, Panda3D may not match the raw power of engines like Unreal Engine or Unity.

C# with Unity is a good experience that can match Python ease of use, compared to Unreal C++ which is far more complex (often described as lower-level compared to Unity’s C#).

Many also associate Python with the Godot engine, due to its custom scripting language, GDScript, which looks like Python. However, GDScript is not derived from Python, and the two should not be confused.

Finally, Python is used as an automation language, in game engines like Unreal Engine or in 3D DCC like Blender, Autodesk Maya, or Autodesk 3DS Max.

Note on Generative AI

Python Technical Specs

Python Course Skills

Overview

Execution Modes

Basic Syntax

Variables & Simple Types

Variable Collections

Operations

Control Structures

Programming Paradigms

Modules & PSL

Getting Started!

Install Python & Visual Studio Code

Python

Visual Studio Code

Terminal

python --version # python3 on macOS

Python Interpreter Modes

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Interactive Mode

The Interactive Mode, also known as the REPL (Read, Evaluate, Print, Loop), is mostly used for executing commands quickly. It’s sometimes shown in tutorials where you see 3 angle brackets (>>>) before each Python line.

In Visual Studio Code, use Ctrl + Shift + P and type Python REPL. You can start the native or the terminal version.

>>> print("Hello, World!")

Script mode

The Script Mode is used to run .py files with the Python interpreter, allowing you to write and execute entire scripts. Personally, I only use this mode 😅!

In Visual Studio Code, create a project (folder) and a script called main.py to write the line below.

print("Hello, World!")

1.4. Project Organization

Most Python projects might follow a conventional structure, which I describe below. Obviously, this structure will heavily change based on the type of app you create.

Additionally, frameworks or (game) engines often dictate your project’s structure, while libraries are components you integrate into your project (so you still decide how to structure your project).

Virtual Environment

python -m venv .venv # .venv is the folder's name
.venv\Scripts\activate # activate virtual environment 
# .venv/bin/activate on macOS & Linux

Pip (Package installer)

pip install package_name   # pip3 on macOS
pip install package_one package_two
pip list # check installed packages

1.7. Conventional Entry Point

# Conventional Entry point (main function)
def main():
    print("Hello, World!")

# Main Guard
if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Indentation

Placeholders

To define empty code blocks, you can use placeholders like pass or the ellipsis (...) to prevent syntax errors.

pass is a do-nothing statement that is simply ignored by the Python interpreter.

def display_data ():
    pass # Empty code block

if True:
    pass

The ellipsis ... is more than just a placeholder, it’s an actual built-in Ellipsis object. It has additional uses, such as type hints or indicating a variable-length tuple.

from typing import Tuple

def work_in_progress():
    ...  # Placeholder for future implementation

vehicles: Tuple[str, ...] = ("Car", "Truck", "Train", "Subway")

Semicolon

You can use a semicolon (;) to write multiple statements on the same line, but this is not recommended and not considered Pythonic.

print("Hello!"); print("Welcome to my app!");

3. Variables & Built-in Data Types

# Random variables
player_score = 100  # Integer (int)
player_name = "Charlotte"  # String (str)
player_is_alive = True  # Boolean (bool)
players = ["Max", "Alicia", "Charlotte", "Shannon"]     # List (list)

# Reassigning variables 
my_player_data = "Alicia"
my_player_data = 250  

# Checking variable's type 
print(type(player_score)) # Result will be class <int>, meaning integer

Type Hints

Since Python 3.5, you can also use type hints (see PEP 484) to specify the type of a variable using a colon (:) after the variable name. However, this is optional and will not affect the program’s behavior. They’re simply there for clarity and for tools like linters!

boss_health: int = 100
player_coins: float = 50.0

Conventions

Python Conventions Overview

None Type

The None type represents the absence of a value or a null value.

player_name = None
# Check if a variable value is None
if player_name is None:
    print("Player name is not set!")

3.3. Numeric Types

Python has several numeric types, including integers (int), floating-point numbers (float), and complex numbers (complex).

player_score = 100        # int: whole numbers
player_health = 100.0     # float: decimals
player_position = 3 + 4j  # complex: real + imaginary numbers (rarely used in most apps)

Integers

Integers (int) are whole numbers, positive or negative, without a decimal point. It’s useful to represent things like scores, levels, or lives in games.

Note that integers do not have a maximum value in Python, unlike other languages such as C++.

player_score = 100
bonus = 25 + 25

player_score += bonus     # Now 150
player_score *= 2         # Now 300
player_score = 200        # Set directly to 200

player_magic_points = 100 + bonus

Floating-Point Numbers

Floats are numbers with decimals, useful for precision in values like health, speed, camera distance, or rotation.

player_health = 75.5
player_attack = 25.3
boss_health = 100.0

Complex Numbers

Complex numbers are real + imaginary numbers (with a j for the imaginary part). It might not be useful for most programs, but interesting for some math operations.

complex_nb = 3 + 4j

3.4. Booleans

The Boolean type (bool) is used to represent True or False values. It’s often used in conditional statements and loops.

While booleans are conceptually different from numeric types, they can be treated as integers where True is 1 and False is 0.

is_game_over = False

if is_game_over:
    print("Game Over!")

3.5. Strings

Strings are sequences of characters, enclosed in single (') or double (") quotes. You can also use triple quotes (''' or """) for multi-line strings.

player_name = "Max"  # Single or double quotes
multi_line = """This is a
multi-line string."""
formatted = f"Player: {player_name}"  # f-string (Python 3.6+)

5. Control Flow

5.1. Conditional Statements

The most classic way to make decisions in any programming language!

score = 1420
rank = ""

if score >= 5000:
    rank = "Legend"
elif score >= 2500:
    rank = "Master"
elif score >= 1000:
    rank = "Gold"
else:
    rank = "Bronze"

print(f"You are ranked: {rank}")

Remember that no parentheses are needed, unlike in other languages such as C++.